Executive Director, Sahara Energy, Wale Ajibade has backed the
Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) conduct of the oil SWAP
arrangement, saying the deals conformed to international standard.
Ajibade who addressed the House Committee Upstream currently
investigating the alleged connivance of NNPC with Swiss Oil Traders to
defraud the government, noted that the deals were transparent and
complied with all audit requirements.
Ajibade who represented Trafigura Trading Oil Company based in
Switzerland explained that there was nothing untoward between his
company’s SWAP arrangements with NNPC/PPMC.
According to him “NNPC in its records noted that Nigerian traders
collectively account for 98.2million barrels on 2013. The other
international traders, including the Swiss Trading Companies lifted 61.2
million barrels while offshore and the Nigerian refineries took 36.2
and 38.3 million barrels respectively. The NNPC trading companies
account for 83.5 million barrels”.
He said in view of the above, there was no remote possibility that
NNPC would lose $6.8 billion from sales below market value to “the
companies described by the petitioners as Swiss Trading Companies”.
“The SWAP arrangement referred to by the Bern Declaration was in line
with the known practices in the oil industry. The NNPC had to dispose
unrefined portion of its 445,000 barrels to meet domestic needs of
petroleum products.
“It is to be noted that the NNPC delivers the international market
value of the crude oil to the federation on the basis of the general
sales agreement and conditions. There is therefore no value loss to the
federation. The claims by the Bernes Declaration are baseless and
without material substance and should be set aside in its entirety”, he
added.
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